New G3 Install on Greengeeks 1st Time User
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chicagostonepro
Joined: 2011-01-08
Posts: 31 |
Posted: Sat, 2011-01-08 03:54
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My service at Greengeeks is shared host. Gallery3 is offered there via Fantastico, but I've seen here that may be a problematic way to install. I know really nothing about coding/programming. Had a little mainframe training about 30 years ago (cobol) but never used it. I've been hunting all over the documentation, but unfortunately still need to know just where this program gets installed with this host. Does it have to go in the "home" directory, or can I just unpack it into the folder for the particular domain I wish it to be on? As far as that goes, can I copy/load the zipped folder into the directory it's to be in, and unzip it in place? I have two different businesses, and want to keep the instances separate. Since my situation is a shared host and "add-on" domains, can one database feed multiple G3 instances, or is each G3 instance tied to its' own database on each domain? Also, are the photo categorizations pretty static, or is it possible to set it up so G3 can assemble a selection based on search criteria, such as "kitchen>countertop>granite>paradiso"? TIA Phil |
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Posts: 16504
You can put it where ever you want on your site. If you want your entire site to just be Gallery, put it at the root of your site (www.example.com) if you want it to be in a sub-directory like www.example.com/gallery create a directory called Gallery and upload the code there. IOW, yes you can unpack it into any directory you want that's web accessible.
No, one G3 cannot feed multiple databases. G3 is actually really small in the terms of code base size and number of files compared to G2. You'll need a separate install of G3 for each instance. Although if you're really concerned, you could probably get pretty creative with symlinks, just so each install had it's own unique "var" directory. You can have 2 different G3 installs pointing to the same database so long as you use a unique table prefix so they are using separate tables in the DB.
We don't call them "categories", our term is "album" and you can name and structure your albums anyway you want (though your structure may be dictated a bit if you want to get into setting permissions and keeping some groups of people out of certain albums)
Have you found your way to these docs yet?
http://codex.gallery2.org/Gallery3:User_guide
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Thank you so much for that doc link! That's about the best reference page I've seen on installing G3.
Your point about one database serving two instances of G3 was what I was wondering about. Because my hosting treats all my domains basically as internal subdomains, I'm a little puzzled about how that works out with G3, if it will be better with one database serving two or three domains, or just discrete instances? Less complex is better; I'm not sure which way is really less complex.
I could learn about symlinks, if this would be less problematic than the alternative. What's a symlink?
I can hear you laughing.
I got G3 to install a couple days ago, but couldn't get any photos to show. I did manage to install the Greydragon theme. I'm looking forward to using that, and working with the SEO optimized links.
Thank you for your help. Your quick response was amazing.
Phil
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http://www.greengeeks.com/
Looks like you have "unlimited" databases available. Just create a separate DB for each G3 install. IMO, that makes things easier.
You also have "unlimited" webspace so I wouldn't worry about having multiple copies of the code base either. G3 installs are small and it's going to be a lot more simple to manage multiple installs this way.
As far as not being able to get photos to show, be sure to follow the documentation on installing and see what that all says. Also try a different Graphics toolkit like ImageMagick, see Admin > Settings > Grahics
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Thanks again.
I'm interested in using the new non-flash Organize module, so I'll be trying out 3.01.
Before I proceed, is there any particular best practice regarding naming conventions for these databases?
Phil Albee
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Well, I installed everything clean and simple, ImageMagic was active by default, set up the Greydragon theme, set up two albums, and uploaded some photos. They don't show up, and the interface says there's no pictures. Back to Admin, and it shows photos uploaded. Back to Gallery, nothing there.
I haven't seen any error messages.
Now what?
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The frontend seemed like it stopped working. On refresh, I got a Firefox timeout error. Using www.chicagostoneshop.com/gallery gets a 404 error. Using the installer link, I can get to the frontend. Then, I found the frontend hadn't stopped working, but it took a over a minute to get to the backend, and once there, similar performance navigating the backend pages.
I didn't have this problem on the previous install, but then, previous install was 3.0. This one says it's 3.0.x branch (git).
However, in Theme Options, Prerequisites, I get Requirements need to be met for theme to function properly. The suggested modules are:
# Fancybox Module not Found
Install module to Enable Fancybox Support
# Kbd Navigation Module not Found
Install module to Enable Keyboard Navigation Support
# ThumbNav Module not Found
Install module to Enable Thumb Navigation Support
This is exactly what happened on the 3.0 install. Do I really need to install these modules, or is something else screwed up, causing the software to call for these modules?
Can there a problem with the image names? Here's an example: ChicagoKitBath_CaesarStone_LagosBlue1. Also tried with the file extension included .jpeg, same result.
The freezes and 404 error are new, with the 3.1 install.
Var log:
application/x-httpd-php 2011-01-09.log.php
PHP script text
<?php defined('SYSPATH') or die('No direct script access.'); ?>
Site address: http://chicagostoneshop.com/gallery/index.php/
Tia.
Phil
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No. My old host used the convention of: username_##_name
where username = the username, ## is some number, like 01, name is the name of the db, like gallery3
Looks like most (all) of your issues are theme related. Try the basic operations using the default Wind theme first, uploading photos, creating albums, etc and make sure those work first.
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Still doesn't work.
I even deleted the previous albums and set up new ones. There's no error that the photos didn't upload. The dialogue indicates the process completed.
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Just upgraded to the latest build, default theme. Still not working.
The theme says the upload is complete, but the file apparently doesn't make it into the database, or is there, but G3 can't access it.
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I figured out the 404 error, I guess that's an error with me, not the program. I may be wrong, but it looks like with the way Greengeeks structures the service, there's a common root to all added domains. I'm at a loss with how to create a gallery page as anything but a subdomain, and could probably manage it as a redirect if I wanted to.
That's not the issue for me now. First, G3 needs to actually work.
Tia.
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Where is your G3 installed now? I'm getting a 404 from http://www.chicagostoneshop.com/gallery and even from http://www.chicagostoneshop.com/gallery/README (which doesn't require PHP) so it looks like either the code isn't where we think it is, or there's some Apache configuration issue.
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Hi Bharat!
Sorry about that.
I had it under gallery-gallery3. I just now renamed it to http://chicagostoneshop.com/gallery/. I don't have a website up in front of it, so if you go to http://www.chicagostoneshop.com/ you can see the files.
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how large are your originals? I find that if they are to large gallery uploads them, processes them, tells me all is okay and there aren't any pictures. I use 'server add' now for just about everything.
Bill
http://rhmpano.com
http://rhmpano.org
Business
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Hi Bill,
So far, the range is from 2.1 to 3.20 MB. I'm pulling them from a folder on my harddrive.
Are those large?
Thanks.
Phil
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Hah, I guess I just figured out the answer. I think.
Nice galleries, Bill. I got the idea while looking at one of your images, to check the properties, and saw about 45,000bytes. Mine are like 3 million.
I'm really out of my competency here, I guess. I still need someone knowledgeable to verify that this could be the problem.
Supposedly, ImageMagick is enabled on my install. I suppose I need to access that somehow to manipulate the image sizes? Not sure if I can do server add, but if I can, I'll certainly do it - but won't users then have problems with the images anyway, or does Gallery define all that?
I appreciate this help, btw.
While I'm on this, if G3 has a problem beyond a certain size, wouldn't it somehow flag the problem?
Sorry for all the noobiness.
Phil
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@chicagostonepro: there should be something in your gallery3/var/logs error logs if we were unable to upload the file, but file size limits could definitely be an issue. Can we see your phpinfo?
FAQ: How do I create a phpinfo page?
That might help us figure it out.
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Here's what I found in the var log
application/x-httpd-php 2011-01-11.log.php
PHP script text
<?php defined('SYSPATH') or die('No direct script access.'); ?>
2011-01-11 20:59:13 -06:00 --- error: File not found: login
The phpinfo file is made and uploaded; http://chicagostoneshop.com/gallery/phpinfo.php
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I get that Gallery is open source, staffed by volunteers, etc, but I really want to get an image gallery up and running for my business, and due to timing constraints and planning commitments, I'm going to have to move to something else if I can't get G3 going soon.
My sincere thanks to those who've taken time from their busy schedules to help me so far. You've been wonderful. No hard feelings toward G3 or anyone associated with it, if my problem can't be addressed.
If someone can actually help me solve this thing, I promise to do my best not to be a pain as we work through this.
Phil
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Per Bharat's request:
Var log:
application/x-httpd-php 2011-01-16.log.php
PHP script text
<?php defined('SYSPATH') or die('No direct script access.'); ?>
My gallery page has two albums, "Kitchen" and "Bath". The Bath album says it holds two photos, but there's no thumbnail image, and when the album is selected, it says there are no photos. http://chicagostoneshop.com/gallery/index.php/
Attempts to upload photos to the Kitchen album just now failed. Again. I have yet to see any success with this program.
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I would try to add a very small image first to see if the memory_limit of 40M is enough.
try to add a small image first.
Then verify that you can use Image magic as your image processing toolkit. Admin->settings-> Graphics
Dave
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Posts: 31
Thank you Dave.
I was able to upload a 59.4 KB image, something I found online somewhere. ImageMagick is shown as the active toolkit. I don't see how to open and use ImageMagick, but under the image drop-down menu, I found I could rotate the image, so I suppose it's working.
Had a problem selecting the image from the folder on my harddrive, though. When I got to the folder, nothing showed. I had to select from the file drop-down menu, and my image names didn't show because I couldn't see the entire filename. I just grabbed a random filename. The upload utility doesn't recognize some of the image folders on my harddrive, either. Obviously, this is a problem.
The failed image uploads didn't do this - I was able to see them in the folder.
After all these weeks, small success. I'm really puzzled, though. You said the memory limit is 40M; the images I'm having failures with so far max at 3.2MB.
You're giving me hope. What's next?
Phil
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Your max upload file size limit is 2MB according to your phpinfo. G3 tries to override that and wasn't able to, so you may or may not be able to change that. If not, contact your host, but try this:
FAQ: Why can't I upload big files (over a megabyte or two)?
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Thank you so much. Now I'm learning how to read the phpinfo. I never would have figured this out.
Greengeeks allows the increases, and one of the techs says he increased the limits, but the phpinfo hasn't changed, and I still can't upload pics. Here's the php.ini file path and info:
/home/granites/public_html/chicagostoneshop.com/php.ini
upload_max_filesize = 50M
post_max_size = 50M
upload_tmp_dir = 50M
Do I need to move this inside the Gallery folder?
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I moved it into the Gallery folder, my phpinfo page updated, and I was able to upload a kitchen photo. However, no thumbnail image, only the image title inside the thumbnail field. When selected, a title instead of image, but with a live link above it that actually opens the photo, full size.
Under the photo info block, the file name runs off the theme boundary to the right.
Progress. Now what?
http://chicagostoneshop.com/gallery/phpinfo.php
Var log:
application/x-httpd-php 2011-01-17.log.php
PHP script text
<?php defined('SYSPATH') or die('No direct script access.'); ?>
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upload_tmp_dir has an invalid value. That should either be blank or a path, but 50M is invalid.
That may or may not be causing the problem.
Also are you sure you're using ImageMagick under Admin > Settings > Graphics?
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Thanks. The Greengeeks tech created the file, and I was wondering about that line, not seeing it in info at the link you provided me earlier.
It's been showing as the active toolkit all along, but just now, it's still shown as the active toolkit, but is now faded out, with an error across it, saying it can't be located on my system. GM (not active, never was) shows the same error.
Was previously found on my system, don't recall the location.
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Ok. well for now, since your memory has been bumped up, try using GD and see if that works.
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Just changed the upload_tmp_dir value to blank. http://chicagostoneshop.com/gallery/phpinfo.php
Nothing changed on the viewing end.
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Clear your browser cache or try viewing on another machine and you will find your gallery is working fine.
I can see Cheepy the Robin about to meet an unfortunate end for instance.
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dakanji.com
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Okay, changed the toolkit to GD, and the existing image still no good, but uploaded the same image again, and it works, but takes forever to switch into and out of the album.
Thank you. Any idea how to get ImageMagick back? Looks to me like that's the optimal toolkit, and apparently, it's available with Greengeeks.
Man, I so appreciate your help.
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@Dayo,
Cheepy is a test of a small image, named in honor of my daughter and best friend's stuffed toy bird mascot.
Cheepy worked fine from the get-go, but thanks for the input. Seems things are better now for the larger image.
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I see and just going over this thread, I can see "... the range is from 2.1 to 3.20 MB. I'm pulling them from a folder on my harddrive.".
Well, those are too big really for web display purposes and as a rough guide, your online images should probably be about 150kb or less as a rough guide and even smaller yet for optimal performance. Most of those on my site are well under 100kb.
So rather than trying to change your server to accommodate massive files, you should be looking at changing your workflow to produce appropriately sized images which you can then upload. Most image software applications have a "save for web" feature.
On IMageMagick, it is a great toolkit and is more reliable for people on shared servers when they are unable to change some settings which the host may have set too low. If the default GD is working for you as it seems to be and is likely to continue to be with reasonably sized images, I wouldn't worry about IM.
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Thanks for the info, Dayo.
Your site is well laid out, and really beautiful. Nice work.
I plan to create a gallery for family, where the larger images would be useful for the older folk, but that will be the next project, not this one.
I moderate a natural stone forum site, and when folks have a problem and wish to post pics, we have them go to photobucket, upload images there, and post the link in the forum topic/thread. My idea is to set up gallery on chicagostoneshop for this, and basically use it as part of a system to catalog stone problems and their resolutions, searchable, linked back to the relevant topic/thread on the forum. I would like the images to display a bit better than they do on photobucket, to help the experts resolve issues easier. Was thinking there could be a default size, with an option for a larger image if warranted.
The huge images that fill the monitor are definitely overkill for this.
I'd like any necessary resizing to be transparent to the users. Can I configure GD, ImageMagick, etc. to handle this?
I've got an idea for the users' logins, too, that fits into this scheme, but first things first.
So, what's the way forward on the image sizing issue?
Phil
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I see ... the images might be uploaded by third parties.
Well, I don't know enough about G3 to go into the specifics but you should be able to define image dimensions in Gallery and the active toolkit will be used to resize to these dimensions.
I would say you should however define a maximum image upload size (300kb seems a good number) and will not recommend allowing users to throw 50mb images at your server.
As a general principle, images should be resized by the user for web display before attempting to upload them. Some large sites with massive servers have decided to just accept everything and resize them themselves. You can try to do this but it wouldn't be an advisable option due to the server load it would generate.
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That 50MB number was set by the Greengeeks tech, after I told him G3 had a limit of 40MB. I guess he was trying to be helpful.
I guess Photobucket is one of those sites with massive servers that do the resizing themselves. I don't know how Greengeeks would handle such a situation, though the tech seemed quite generous with the settings. The problem is, lots of folks will approach this exactly like I did - take a picture, upload to the harddrive, then send it up to the site - not really understanding (and not really wanting to deal with) the technicalities of server load and image display software.
I don't mind learning, myself, because this involves my business. However, the process for my forum guests/members has to be as simple as Photobucket, or it won't fly.
Your images come up about as large on the screen as mine - so how is it the image size is so much smaller?
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Ask your host where ImageMagick is installed at. Then you should be able to set the path manually under Admin > Settings > Advanced
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I just moved the php.ini back out of the Gallery folder, and G3 found ImageMagick again. Says version 6.4.8 is available in /usr/bin. So, what's up with that, and what's the solution?
OOPS - Looks like you got your post in while I was still typing mine. Thank you for that, I'll do that.
Phil
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GreenGeeks says the ImageMagick path is: /usr/include/ImageMagick. I set that as the graphics toolkit path, and deleted GD as the active toolkit name, replaced it with "ImageMagick". Under Graphics, there is only a blank page, no active toolkit shows. I went back to Advanced, tried leaving the name blank, and "IM", but nothing shows on the active toolkit page in any case.
However, I can upload and rotate images. I assume this is ImageMagick working.
Greengeeks says they're looking into ImageMagick, and when sure the latest stable version is compatible with their service, will upgrade.
How do I get the Active Toolkit graphics page to work again? I found this: http://codex.gallery2.org/Gallery3:FAQ#GraphicsMagick_or_ImageMagick_are_installed_but_I_can.27t_select_them._What_do_I_do.3F and wonder if that would do it?
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Can you post a screenshot of your Admin > Settings > Graphics screen?
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The forum won't let me attach .bmp files. Tell me how to post a screenshot, please.
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Thought I saw somewhere that the Greydragon theme isn't compatible with the experimental versions. What's the status for version 3.0.1 (build 8), and what's the practical difference between fancybox and shadowbox?
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Save to jpg.
And please, if you are having problems with any aspect of Gallery switch to the Wind theme and try it there.
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Screenshot attached. Thanks for the kind reminder.
I'm using Wind; in fact, my installation doesn't show me any other options, and I haven't uploaded any optional themes since I switched to the experimental version of G3. I like the GreyDragon theme, and wish to use it when I get my G3 installation sorted out, which seems to be your advice - which I appreciate.
Thank you.
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